Leaders from across the travel industry are meeting in Tbilisi today.
In Georgia, where history is a roll call of conflicts, hello (‘Gamarjoba’) translates as ‘be victorious’.
Given the Caucasian country’s familiarity with invasions, it is a fitting host for this year’s World Tourism Day (WTD) theme of peace.
What is World Tourism Day?
Run by UN Tourism, today’s event will highlight the role tourism can play as a catalyst for fostering peace and understanding between nations. Government ministers and industry leaders are set to attend Freedom Square in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
“As we mark World Tourism Day this year our planet is ravaged by war and insecurity,” says Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of UN Tourism and a Georgian politician.
“Around one in four of the global population now lives in areas of conflict. Many of us have first-hand experience of the suffering caused by war and the impacts are felt far outside of warzones.”
Georgia’s own tourism sector has been through some seismic shifts in recent years. Previously a popular destination for Russian tourists, President Putin’s 2019 travel embargo hit Georgian tourism prior to the pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine.
But its star is on the rise with a growing number of international holiday-makers attracted to the vibrant city of Tbilisi, the country’s diverse geography and its famed cuisine.
Why is peace the theme of World Tourism Day 2024 and who is speaking?
“We must urgently stand up for peace,” says Pololikashvili, arguing that “the global tourism family” is uniquely well placed to do so.
“Ours is the most human sector. Every journey leads to a connection. Tourism brings the world together and closer. Tourism builds trust and respect.”
An estimated 285 million tourists travelled internationally in the beginning of 2024, according to UN Tourism figures.
The sector also creates 10 per cent of the world’s jobs – many of them held by young people – thereby reducing poverty and inequality and helping to lay the foundations for more peaceful conditions.
Held on 27 September every year since 1980, World Tourism Day comes at the end of the high season in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of the season in the southern hemisphere.
Last year’s event, held in Riyadh, emphasised the need for better-targeted investments in the sector.
Today’s World Tourism Day takes place at Paragraph Freedom Square, a luxury hotel. Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze will address delegates, alongside Pololikashvili and Saudi Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al Khateeb.
Tourism ministers from Guatemala, Sierra Leone, Bahrain, Cuba, Jamaica and Malaysia will also be speaking at peace-focused panel discussions throughout the day, before the handover to Malaysia – host of World Tourism Day 2025.
“Let us work together as a sector united to make tourism a beacon of hope and ensure that when peace does return to areas of conflict, we are ready to help people rebuild and connect,” adds Pololikashvili.
